A GMA BOOK CLUB PICK • #1 Indie Next pick for April
“Mesmerizing. . . . An ingenious, exquisite, be-careful-what-you-wish-for. . . . In Burke’s biting prose, Natalie is an electric antiheroine. . . . Revelatory. . . . Yesteryear draws to a dizzying conclusion.” —The New York Times Book Review
“An absolutely unhinged (in a good way) novel about a lifestyle influencer. . . . When I tell you the ending is off the rails, I am telling you the ending is off the rails.” —Roxane Gay, author of Bad Feminist
“Caro’s writing grabbed me by the throat and wouldn’t let go.” —Anne Hathaway
“The canniest fictional dissection of femininity and the panopticon of social media. . . . A rollicking satirical debut.” —Vogue, ‘The Best Books of 2026’
“It would be easy to turn this premise into a smug ‘I told you so’ satire and Natalie into a cartoonish punching bag, but Burke doesn’t take the bait. For all her privileged blind spots and, ahem, selective representations of her lifestyle, our (anti)heroine is admirably sincere in her faith and uncomfortably compelling in some of her critiques of contemporary feminism. We can’t completely dismiss her, which raises the stakes of entrapment and of the book’s broader inquiries into traps of modern womanhood and the politics that exploit them.” —Oprah Daily, ‘Best Books of Spring 2026’
“Perfect wife, perfect life? Think again. A bold and biting satire, Yesteryear examines the power of social media to spin a lie so deep, it turns 'home sweet home' into a prison. Page-turning and illuminating, this caustic look at the tradwife will have you cackling and gasping right to the final page.” —Nita Prose, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid series
“Yesteryear is the novel I didn’t know I needed. Inventive, addictive, and perfectly funny, this is a dark, biting social commentary on the many performances of modern womanhood and the cultural age we’re living in. A wild, thought-provoking ride, sure to be one of my favorite books of the year.” —Ashley Audrain, New York Times bestselling author of The Push
“The closest we’ll get inside a tradwife’s real and imperfect mind. . . . Burke doesn’t hold back. . . . The humor is delightful . . . I laughed out loud. . . . Burke’s writing is honest and accessible. She’s not trying to slander Natalie; she’s trying to show us the unvarnished version. At the end of the day, that’s the paradox of Yesteryear—and one that makes it worth reading.” —The Cut
“Bitingly funny and occasionally heartbreaking. . . . Burke deftly paints a portrait of a woman whose sharp edges and supreme capability put her at odds with everyone in her life. . . . More than a giddy, gory tale of a tradwife’s comeuppance. . . . Emotionally resonant.” —Los Angeles Times
“[Yesteryear] is unusually ambitious for a debut novel, and also uncannily astute about the complicated, contradictory times in which we live.” —Boston Globe
“Daring, deranged, [and] cleverly written. Rather than presenting us with a moralistic fable on the dangers of trad wifery, Burke submerges us in Natalie’s consciousness, giving us a nuanced 360 view of the hopes, fantasies and often dark motivations lurking behind such a figure.” —Vogue (UK)
“I’ve read very few books that grabbed me from the first page and didn’t let me go. But from the moment I picked up Yesteryear, I became completely sucked in. In Natalie Heller Mills, the novel’s cunning yet charming narrator, debut author Caro Claire Burke has created an antihero for our time. . . . What she discoveres genuinely made my jaw drop when I realized exactly where the story was going.” —GLAMOUR
“A zeitgeisty exploration of the trad wive life. . . . Part social satire, part thriller, the story taps into the zeitgeist, tackling everything from influencer culture and trad wives to social media, conservative religion and feminism. The novel is poised to dominate WhatsApp groups, book clubs and office water cooler conversations. . . . Gripping, pacy and thought-provoking, with a memorable protagonist I loathed but was fascinated by in equal measure. . . . Witty, funny and thought-provoking.” —The Independent
Yesteryear, an intricately plotted debut novel by Caro Claire Burke, has been getting lots of attention—and deservedly so. . . . [An] ambitious, suspenseful, and yes, ultimately melancholy story of its heroine’s aspirations and capitulations to ideas of how women should live their lives.” —Maureen Corrigan, NPR
“On the surface, the [novel’s] premise seems simple enough if boiled down to an elevator pitch. . . . But Yesteryear is far more multilayered than [its] Twilight-Zone like premise would suggest. . . . It all makes for a colourful and provocative tale that is both entertaining and timely.” —Calgary Herald
“Wickedly funny, beautifully written, and frighteningly perceptive. Caro Claire Burke doesn't just expose the underbelly of a tradwife's immaculate Instagram, but ideals of motherhood, marriage, and America. It's unforgettable. (How the hell could you forget Natalie?)” —Abigail Dean, New York Times bestselling author of Girl A
“Shot through with humour and yet laced with darkness, Yesteryear had me turning the pages late into the night.” —Clare Mackintosh, New York Times bestselling author of I Let You Go
“Everyone is going to be talking about this book.” —Bella Mackie, bestselling author of How to Kill Your Family
“Yesteryear is unapologetically political fiction in the tradition of The Stepford Wives or The Handmaid’s Tale. Burke takes us right into the belly of the beast. Enraging, thrilling—often grimly funny in the way of good satire, but still intensely humane. Easily one of my favorites of the year.” —Hannah Deitch, author of Killer Potential
“I could barely put this book down. Such a clever excavation of motherhood and faith and online fame. Highly original and utterly addictive.” —Louise O’Neill, author of Asking for It
“Intelligent, incisive and insanely readable, Yesteryear had me obsessed from page one. Everyone will be talking about it!” —Jennie Godfrey, author of The List of Suspicious Things
“Insanely good, totally fresh, sharp and spiky. It reminded me of Gone Girl, with its unreliable, intensely unlikeable narrator, amazing twist and needlepoint observations. It’s going to be seismic.” —Stacey Halls, author of The Familiars
“Deliciously topical as tradwives and pronatalism dominate the headlines, with a chef’s kiss of a twist. One to gobble in one.” —Pandora Sykes, author of How Do We Know We’re Doing it Right?
“Unpredictable, original and beautifully written. I couldn’t guess the genius ending—my mind was blown!” —Adele Parks, author of Just Between Us
“I am lucky enough to have already this and, let me tell you, it’s a wild ride. . . . Gripping, addictive, timely and very funny, there’s a reason Yesteryear has already been passed around the Vogue office multiple times.” —Daisy Jones, Vogue (UK)
“The best book I’ve read so far this year. It’s so good, in fact, I wished it was about 500 pages longer.” —Chatelaine
“Burke keeps the reader guessing. . . . I had no idea where the story was going—and found myself genuinely surprised at the end.” —ELLE
“A propulsive page turner, impossible to put down. . . . Wickedly entertaining. . . . As it sends up both MAGA and online culture, this deliciously funny, topical, and fiercely intelligent debut also probes deeper questions about authenticity, ambition, kindness, celebrity, consumerism, and what it means to be a woman in America today. . . . In Natalie, Burke has given us an absolutely riveting character. . . . A remarkable debut—both a book for the moment and one that will endure.” —Kirkus (starred review)
“Burke captures much of the zeitgeist in Natalie's increasingly delusional, overall disturbing state of mind in both time periods—and in other characters' collisions with it. The seductive topic, unreliable narrator, and surprisingly creepy vibes are sure to draw readers in and keep them guessing.” —Booklist (starred review)
“Readers won’t be able to look away. . . . Captivating.” —Library Journal
“[Yesteryear] is a tense, intriguing, funny and at times otherworldly read with conversation-starting observations about fame, social media and ‘the performance of motherhood.’” —The Sunday Times
“[Yesteryear] is a blistering, darkly funny and propulsive satire on internet culture, performance, and American womanhood.” —The Glossary (UK), ‘The Buzziest New Books of 2026’
“A fascinating examination of our cultural obsession with curating the ‘perfect’ life, [Yesteryear] is equal parts propulsive, entertaining and unhinged—in truly the best of ways. It’s already being adapted into a movie starring Anne Hathaway, and I can see why it will also be a contender for many ‘book of the year’ lists.” —Yahoo (UK), ‘The Best New Books to Read This Month, Chosen by Our Literary Editor’
“This debut novel blends satire and psychological thriller as it follows Natalie, a modern influencer alternately loved and hated for her so-called tradwife lifestyle, as she’s suddenly thrust back into the actual life of a tradwife: that is, a farm in 1855. . . . You’ll want to read this one ASAP.” —Marie Claire
“Nightmarish, shocking, brilliant.” —Stylist
“An intoxicating fever dream through the lens of a thrillingly complex protagonist.” —Hannah Beer, author of I Make My Own Fun
“Yesteryear is a thoughtful look behind the curtrain at carefully curated social media influencers. . . . I couldn’t quit reading this story. Hard to believe this is a debut!” —Angela Sides, American Booksellers Association
“A journey fraught with peril and revelation.” —TIME, ‘12 New Books You Should Read in April’
“A gripping, twisting novel that will keep you guessing throughout.” —Irish Examiner, ‘10 books for April’
“Sure to be a favourite with book clubs everywhere, Yesteryear is the definition of a page-turner, with sharp commentary on family blogging culture and ‘trad wife’ influencers and a twist that will leave you reeling.” —Mirror (UK)
“Bracing… There are more than a few satisfying twists that kept me reading late into the night. . . . Juicy, vindictive and loads of fun.” —Maddie Oatman, Mother Jones
“Funny, terrifying and original.” —Woman & Home
“Truly original. . . . This clever book holds up a mirror to the current obsession with influencers and their curated lives. . . . The perfect mix of propulsive and thought-provoking.” —Good Housekeeping (7 best new novels to read in April)
“A darkly funny, audacious debut with a haunting Gone Girl vibe and a shocking twist you’ll never see coming.” —People (Best Books of April 2026)
“This isn’t a lazy spin on a hot-take gimmick. Burke takes all her ideas around Natalie, her conservative, good Christian wife and mother who lives on a farm in Idaho with her big, healthy family, and follows them through to their logical, sometimes brutal conclusions. . . . Yesteryear is a page-turner and a real ride, pitching from comedy to horror and back again. . . . The shortcuts to authenticity we all take to please the internet and the ‘maze’ of choice for modern women are both laid bare amongst the handmade soap, chicken coops and sourdough starters. This is a savage state-of-the-world satire that implicates everyone.” —shortlist (10 must-read fiction books to sort your Spring reading)
“I am about 10% away from finishing Yesteryear. Do not tell me what happens. It is so good.” —Jodi Picoult, author of By Any Other Name
